20190202 Lord's Abhiṣeka by Devotees (Part-1)

Come Join us is Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja read's from the new Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book 2nd February 2019, Chennai, India.

Introduction: Welcome to all the devotees. Today was the auspicious 2nd of February, Saturday here in India, Chennai.

In the morning I had the physical therapy and then in the afternoon I had cycling, I went over 900 cycles, and also had dinner. Various kinds of sandwiches and then now, giving class on Lord Caitanya. We are happy to welcome devotees from Manipal university, and Kṛṣṇa, Aṅkitā and Lakṣmī. So today we are having the first verse which is from Caitanya-caritāmṛta. Since that was translated by Prabhupāda, I will just take the translation as he gave it.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta Ādi-līlā 17.11

prabhura abhiṣeka tabe karila śrīvāsa
khāṭe vasi’ prabhu kailā aiśvarya prakāśa

Translation by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura then worshiped Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu by the process of abhiṣeka. Sitting on a cot, the Lord exhibited transcendental opulence.

Purport by Śrīla Prabhupāda: Abhiṣeka is a special function for the installation of the Deity. In this ceremony the Deity is bathed with milk and water and then worshiped and given a change of dress. This abhiṣeka function was especially observed at the house of Śrīvāsa. All the devotees, according to their means, worshiped the Lord with all kinds of paraphernalia, and the Lord gave benedictions to each devotee according to his desire.”

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Madhya-khaṇḍa 9.7

madhya-khaṇḍa kathā bhāi śuna eka-cite
mahāprabhu gauracandra vihare ye-mate

Jayapatākā Swami: My dear brothers, hear with a single-minded concentration, all the topics of the Madhya-khaṇḍa, how Gauracandra Mahāprabhu enjoyed His pastimes!

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Madhya-khaṇḍa 9.8 

vaiṣṇavagaṇera manobhilāṣa-siddhiprada caitanyera mahāprakāśa

ebe śuna caitanyera mahā-parakāśa
yaṅhi sarva-vaiṣṇavera siddhi-abhilāṣa

Jayapatākā Swami: Now listen to Lord Caitanya’s mahā-parakāśa-līlā where all the Vaiṣṇavas got their desires fulfilled. So, by you hearing the pastime of Lord Caitanya’s mahā-parakāśa or great revelation, you will also get your desires fulfilled. [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!!

I hope you all have Kṛṣṇa conscious desires?!

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.82

kaliḥ tasya khalu sakalāgha-lāghaba-kāriṇaḥ
kaṭākṣa-pāta-mātreṇaiba para-hṛdaẏād api
kāmādi-ṣaḍ-bipakṣa-pakṣa-cchido
bhagabataḥ krodha-baśīkāraḥ kiṃ citram?

Kaliḥ gauracandra hena (jagāi mādhāi ati pāpacāra) pāpī karila uddhāra

Translation: “With a sidelong glance He lightens all sins and tears apart lust and all other vices in the hearts of others. How can He be overcome with anger?”

hena pāpī ye uddhāre seita isvara.

“Behind the scenes is a blissful tumult.”

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.83

kaliḥ (śrutam abhinīya): sakhe! śrutam idam? adya khalu śrī-vāsāvāsānantare
yad ayam ānanda-kutūhala-halahalārābaḥ śrūyate
tenānumitam amita-mahā-mahanīyaṃ
tasyaiba kim api cetaś camatkāra-kārī-caritam unmīlati

Jayapatākā Swami: So the personality of Kali is listening and is talking to his friend, irreligion, friend listen, irreligion listen! “I hear tumultuous sounds of bliss from Śrīvas’s house. I can guess these are limitlessly glorious pastimes of Śrī Caitanya that feel the heart with wonder are revealed.”

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.84

kaliḥ (nipuṇaṃ nibhālya): aye! satyam evāṇumitam asmādṛśā dṛśyamānam ivaitat
punarvāra veśa sthale ulu ulu dhvani vividha bādya ye bāje sumadhura śuni
śuni kali bhālarūpe karila nirṇaya
adharmera prati tāhā vyakta kari kaya
ye karila anumāna anyathā nā haya
mahā mahotsava

Jayapatākā Swami: So Kali, the personality of this yuga, he was carefully looking. It is ascertained to be true, as if I can see it.

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.85

āji śrīvāsa ālaẏa.
dekha dekhi bhūmisura suranārīgaṇa
ekatra ululu deẏa ullāsita manaḥ
bhaktagaṇa manaḥ toṣe jaẏadhvani bole
bājiẏe sakale nānābidha bādya kare

viśaṅkhala śaṅkha ghaṇṭā bājicheka rasāla
śravaṇe prabeśa yena sudhārasa dhāra

ekakāle etaka maṅgala samudaẏa
ataeba kona mahodaba rasamaẏa

e utsaba āji cala abaśya dekhiba
dekhiẏā naẏana dui saphala kariba

Jayapatākā Swami: Kali is telling his friend, irreligion, look, the auspicious ulu-dhvani calls have begun of the brāhmaṇa ladies, the blissful sounds of jaya, jaya, jaya jaya... I can’t hear you over the internet! The playing of many instruments and the unrestrained, tumultuous sounds of conch shells, mṛdaṅgas are a great festival, like a flood of nectar to hear!

I must get a closer look! Kali does that, he is looking. This is a drama written in the Caitanya-candrodaya Nāṭaka, the drama of Caitanya-candrodaya. The drama is in Sanskrit and we are reading the Bengali translation.

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.86

ethā śrīnivāsa gaurahari pāña ghare
nija bhrātṛgaṇe kaha ānanda antare

śuna rāma arghyera sāmagrī tumi bara
aṣṭottara śata ghaṭa śrīpati āhāra

śrīkānte kahe tumi vipra nārīgaṇe
navaghaṭa gaṅgājala bahi yena āne

Jayapatākā Swami: So Śrīvāsa, he is speaking from behind the scenes. Rāma, quickly bring the arghya, and the other articles of worship. Śrīpati, please bring the aṣṭottara-śata, 108 new kalaśa, excellent new kalaśa – kalaśa is a jar.

Śrīkānta, from every direction direct the brāhmaṇa ladies and the pious women to bring water from the Ganges, now, now!! Festival! Festival! Gaurāṅga! Nityānanda! Advaita Gosāñi, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsa adi gaura-bhakta-vṛnda kī jaya!

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.87

kali kahe jānilāma parama ullāsa
sahodara sabhe kahichena śrīnibāsa

āji gauracandra bhakta bhāva parihari
mahā maheśbarābeśe aiśbaryya svīkari

viśvambhara deva vasi prakaṭa prabhāva
abhiṣeka karena śrīvāsa mahābhāga

Jayapatākā Swami: Oh my friend irreligion, I see Śrīvāsa giving duties to his brothers. I think Viśvambhara devā is now revealing his expansive, supreme influence, His mahā-prakāśa, and thus His mahā-abhiṣeka festival has ecstatically begun! [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!!

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.88

adharmma balena yadi svaẏaṃ bhagavāna
āveśa kemana śuni viruddha bandhāna

Jayapatākā Swami: So irreligion, adharma says, if He is the independent Supreme Personality of Godhead, then why is He manifesting His supremacy only now? Tell me!

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 1.89

kali kahe nitya yena īśvara aiśvarya
temati tāhāra nitya āchena mādhurya

aiśvarya mādhurya dui īśvara adhīna
yemana kautuka deyā dena yei dina

kakhana laukika līlā kakhana aiśvarya
tathāpi aiśvarya haite mādhurya se varya

Jayapatākā Swami: The personality of Kali says to his friend irreligion, friend, listen. Although He is eternally the Supreme Personality of Godhead, because He is supremely independent, He does not always reveal His identity to others. By His own desire He sometimes performs actions, similar to the ordinary people, the wise call these, His supremely sweet pastimes.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Madhya-khaṇḍa 9.9

grantakāra-kartṛka prabhura ‘sāta praharaiẏā’ bhāvera sūtra-barṇana

'sāta-praharaiyā-bhāva' loke khyāti yā'ra
yaṅhi prabhu hailena sarva avatāra

Jayapatākā Swami: Seven prahara ecstasy or the 21 hour prāhara-bhāva or ecstasy is known by the people, and there the Lord revealed all His different incarnations. So, a prāhara is 7 half daṇḍas or 3 hours, 7 prāharas is equal to 21 hours. Gaurahari manifested the pastimes of all Viṣṇu incarnations, for 21 hours. During this period, He manifested His wonderful pastimes and satisfied the devotees by eating their offerings and awarding them with devotional service to Lord Hari or Kṛṣṇa. Hari is the name of Kṛṣṇa. So aṣṭama-prāhara is 24 hours, saptam-prāhara is 21 hours. So the Lord’s ārati, abhiṣeka and pūjā went on continuously for 21 hours. [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!! How many would like to be there? [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!!

Caitanya Carita Mahā-kāvya 5.114

yāmānāṃ traẏam iti sambabhuba tatrā-
tītair aṣṭabhir api sārdham atra yāmaiḥ
na snānaṃ na ca gṛha-karma nānya-ceṣṭā
no nidrā na ca śaẏanaṃ tadā janasya

Translation: This is the Caitanya caritāmṛta Mahā-kāvya and the bengali is rajbut 3 prāharas of the day and 8 prāharas of the previous day had passed.

Devotees during this time, had not bathed, had not performed their duties and had not slept or rested. [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]! How is it possible?

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.115

yāhā haūka ei rūpe ati sudīrgha ekādaśa prahara
kāla nimiṣa tulya bodha haila,
tatkāle sukhānubhaba hetu
mahatjana sakalera ai samudāya prahare
kṣaṇakālera janyao cakṣura romera paribartana haya nāi

Jayapatākā Swami: The long duration of 11 prāharas, 33 hours is passed in a second. The devotees were in such great happiness or ecstasy they had not blink their eyes at all. [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!....

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.116

tatkāle jana sakalera netradbaya yena
cira upabāse sampṛha haiyāchila
arthāt netrdbaẏa dvārā kona bastu dekhite kāhārao icchā haẏa nāi
śrotra sakalera badhiratā hetu

barjita haiyāchila arthāt sakala byaktirai śravaṇa vṛtti rodha haiyāchila
evaṃ antaḥkaraṇa yena prathama utpanna haoyāya

(Arthāt abhinaba bālakera mane yemana kona biṣaẏera jñāna haẏa nā, tadrupa) sakale nispanda haïẏāchilena.

Jayapatākā Swami: So the ecstasy that the people were in is described and all the people, for a long time became motionless. Their eyes not seeing, their ears not hearing and their minds inoperable like that of newborn babies. In other words, they were in ecstasy, completely stunned.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.117

ei prakāra biprapatnīgaṇa nirantara nimiṣa śūnya locane
gaurāṅgadebake darśana kariyā
evaṃ gaurāṅgāpita parama prasannatāya mugdha haiyā
antarvāhyera harṣabhare kṣaṇakālera janyao
svakīya dehādike smaraṇa karena nāi

Jayapatākā Swami: The wives of the brāhmaṇas looked at Lord Viśvambhara with unblinking eyes continually, happy with the great mercy given by Gaurāṅga! With external and internal joy, they forgot their bodies for a short time. They were in total bliss! [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]!!

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.118

bhakta sakala ei rūpa prabhura parama rahasya darśana kariyā
kṣudhā tṛṣṇāya paribhūta hayena nāi, ki āścarya!

yakhana dui dina kṣaṇakāla tulya haila takhana ekhāne kṣudhā prabhṛti deha dharmma sakalera dbārā ki haïte pāre?

Jayapatākā Swami: Beholding this great secret reveal, the devotees did not have urges of hunger or thirst. Two days felt like a moment, what is the use of hunger, thirst and other bodily urges?

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Madhya-khaṇḍa 9.10

adbhuta bhojana yaṅhi, adbhuta prakāśa
yāre tāre viṣṇu-bhakti-dānera vilāsa

Jayapatākā Swami: During this pastime the Lord ate wonderful offerings, He manifested wonderful forms, and He gave devotional service of Viṣṇu to one and all. Giving kṛṣṇa-bhakti pastime was enacted by the Lord. Giving kṛṣṇa-bhakti to everyone!

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.35

anyedyur dvija-tanūjān vipāṭhaẏan
sa prodvhinna-prakaṭa-nija-prakāśa āsīt

Jayapatākā Swami: Another day while teaching the sons of the brāhmaṇas, He emanated the most dazzling, spiritual effulgence.

Caitanya Carita Mahā Kāvya 5.36

anantara svataḥsiddha prakāśa
sūryasvarūpa gaurahari
aruṇa varṇa gātrayaṣṭi dhāraṇa kariyā

ekākī nirveda yukta citte aruṇa kamala sadṛśa caraṇa yugala dvārā śrīvāsera ālayera prati gamana karilena

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Gaurahari was effulgent like the sun, with unlimited perfections, He had the sunrise color, kind of saffron colour, pink or what is the color of sunrise here? That aruṇa color. He was going alone and His lotus feet were also like saffron coloured lotuses, and His two lotus feet went into the house of Śrīvāsa.

So we are just half way through this chapter and so we will take some questions now. Two from the public here and two from the internet. Please write your questions down, if you have.

Question: Hare Kṛṣṇa Guru Mahārāja! We are going through the places in parikramā where Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda roamed, as Navadvīpa-maṇḍala parikramā. What is śrī-gauḍa-maṇḍala parikramā Guru Mahārāja?

Jayapatākā Swami: Like a lotus has a central whorl and has eight petals and then has many petals, so the Navadvīpa dhāma is like the center and the eight petals. That is nine islands Sīmantadvīpa, Godrumadvīpa, Madhyadvīpa, Koladvīpa, Ṛtudvīpa, Jahnudvīpa, Modadruma-dvīpa and Rudradvīpa and Antardvīpa.

So that is the nine islands of Navadvīpa parikramā which we do at Gaura-pūrṇimā time. Gauḍa-maṇḍala-bhūmi is the greater place of the Lord’s pastimes, that is like 160 miles. Compared to 32 miles. So it starts from south west Remuṇā to north west Kānāi-nāṭaśālā and beyond. And then in the east, north east is the Śrīhaṭṭa, the birthplace of Śrī Mādhavendra Purī and Advaita Gosāñi, Śacī devī, Jagannātha Miśra and their forefathers. In the south east, is Puṇḍarīka dhāma and the appearance place of the brothers Vāsudeva Dutta and Mukunda Dutta. So this whole are of Bengal, parts of Orissa and parts of Jhārikhaṇḍa and Bangladesh, that is known as Gaura-maṇḍala-bhūmi. That place is described by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura. śrī-gauḍa-maṇḍala-bhūmi yebā jāne cintāmaṇi tāra haya vraja-bhūme vāsa. [Song 38—Sāvaraṇa-Gaura-mahimā]

What is the meaning?

Who accepts the pastime places of Gaura-maṇḍala as transcendental, they also reside in Vraja-bhūmi in Vṛndāvana dhāma.

Question: Guru Mahārāja How can one be steady in the journey of devotion and remain dhīra against any types of obstacles coming in this path? - Suvradev babu

Jayapatākā Swami: Suvradev babu! This is what is called determination. Dhruva Mahārāja, he wanted to get justice. He was a six-year-old child. He got pushed off his father’s lap, because his step mother said that he is not born from my womb. Therefore, you cannot keep him on your lap. Only my son can sit on your lap, and Dhruva got pushed off. So, he went to all the ministers, went to his mother, but nobody could do anything. His mother said, that some ṛṣis go to the forest and they meditate and they realize God, so maybe Bhagavān can help you. So Dhruva Mahārāja went to the forest. He had no idea what Bhagavān looked like. He went up to the lions, tigers, are you Bhagavān? They didn’t answer. Then Bhagavān, Nārāyaṇa, sent Nārada Muni down to help him.

He saw Nārada Muni, he said,“Are you Bhagavān? Are you Bhagavān?”

He said, “No, no I am not Bhagavān.”

“Then I won’t talk to you.” [Ha! Ha!] Iam looking for Bhagavān.”

“I am sent by Bhagavān and I am here to help you. So, it is dangerous that you are a child and here in the jungle there are wild animals and, don’t you want to go home?”

“Either you help me find Bhagavān or I will look myself.”

“Okay, okay!”

So he revealed how he could achieve Bhagavān. So if you are as determined as Dhruva, then nothing will stop us. We will go on looking – We want Bhagavān! Bhagavān or nothing! So we should have that kind of determination. That we want Bhagavān! [Hari-dvani - "Haribol]! Who wants Bhagavān? (raise your hands)! Bhagavān! Bhagavān! Bhagavān! Ha! Ha! So that is how we remain determined. We hear the pastimes of Dhruva Mahārāja and Prahlāda Mahārāja. Hare Kṛṣṇa.